Deer/James
The deer or ceryn (SE-ren) (pl. cerynia se-REN-i-a) is a FANON species of the world containing Equestria. They are for all intents and purposes equivalent to classical elves, with the exception that they are all deer and elk. The cerynia are a peaceful folk who detest war and violence and reside in the Walking Woods near Draconia. Intellectual creatures, they appreciate art and prose, and are masters of magic and other activities of high society. They enjoy social events such as parties and games and welcome outsiders so long as they are not hostile. The cerynia are led by a royal family, and worship the woodlands collectively as their deity. The ceryn concept was developed by James with Draco's assistance. Physical Description A young Ceryn resembles a small deer, roughly the size of a pony. Like the pokemon deerling, their colors vary with the seasons, ranging from dark brown in winter to almost fawn in summer. Ceryn live longer than ponies, averaging 175-200 years of age, and reaching childbearing age at around 21. Older Ceryn females take on lighter tones of fur as they grow, reaching full size (twice pony size) at around 125 years of age. Males, in addition to sprouting antlers instead of small spikes, gradually turn darker. Both Female and Male Cerynia are agile and fast, and though they do no look it, are quite adept at climbing trees, often using the larger trees of their home forests as roads. Culture Cerynia are peaceful creatures, not well suited for war. As such, they regard combat as being unwholesome, though they will fight to defend themselves. In fact, they consider it a very uncouth thing to strike another being, even in jest. Cerynia live in tune with Nature, and as such are quite protective of their forest homelands. Cerynia shelter in various clearings (Which they refer to as Vales), each one comprised of multiple thickets, which house individual families. The Ceryn religion is a theistic worship of Mother Forest and Father Star, who they believe in turn grant power to aid their spells and bless their lives. It goes without saying they are vegetarian. As they worship life, Cerynia do not regard sex, but rather conception as the ultimate expression of love. Thusly, the taboos on sex are far more lax in their culture. Cerynian marriages are traditionally conducted after the birth of the first fawn. As for childrearing, while the main part of teaching and raising the fawn is done by the two parents, the entire vale will watch over the children, and protect them. A fawn is given a name at birth, then takes on a new name when it is deemed they are ready for it, akin to a pony's cutie mark. Cerynia do not receive the fabled "Butt tattoo of Destiny". Cerynia adore music and dancing, for it is the basis of many of their spells, and much of their spare time is devoted to the arts. Rare is the Ceryn who cannot sing, dance, or play an instrument of some sort. Festivals While a full list of all the festivals the Cerynia celebrate would be exhaustive, these parties among the deerfolk are quite common. They serve a number of purposes, for ina addition to socializing deer to deer, and honoring Forest and Star, these festivals also provide opportunities for music and dancing, which as seen below are far more important than they sound. Magic Ceryn magic is nature based, and primarily concerned with defense. As such, they specialize in hiding their tracks, passing silently among the woods, and other such things. They also are naturals at Floropathy and perfected the art of Animancy. Unique among most magics, Cerynian magic is often Communal in nature, with each deer providing a piece of the finished whole. As seen with the Great Shield, this can produce awe-inspiring pieces of magic. The most powerful Cerynian spell is the aformentioned Great Shield, a spell which every Cerynian is taught from their cradle. Cast once every seven years, at the Festival of the Violet Moon, this shield guards a Cerynian Woodland from interlopers of all sorts, even from dragons. The way it does this varies from wood to wood. Politics The Cerynia are ruled by their Elders, with one elder acting as the guiding force for each Vale. While officially a Vale's Elder has little political clout, being more along the lines of a settler of arguments than an actual ruler, they do influence the Kings of each nation, who meet with them periodically to discuss various troubles. Each Nation of Cerynia (Roughly equivalent to the nations themselves) is ruled by a King. This King usually acts as representative of his Deer, both to the High King and to any outside influences. Equestria currently lacks such a King. The High King, who also serves as the King of the Walking Woods, is ostensibly the ruler of all Cerynia, and acts as such. It is thus his job to meet with other Heads of State when the need arises. He or She more comonly serves as the primary ruler of the Walking Woods. Other political figures include Healers, who often serve as Priests of Forest and Star (Along with advisors to the various elders and kings), and Runners, who act as guards and scouts for the woodlands. List of cerynia Note that all cerynia are by definition original characters, and that many of them lack an account. * Master Rosan, who is currently a tree; * Summerbloom; and * Starvale. Speak with James before playing any of these characters.